Een prachtige plaat van de Mexicaanse zangeres van Indiaanse afkomst Lila Downs, waarop zij Mexicaanse stijlen als cumbia, bolero, ranchera mixt met oveirge wereld muziek stijlen.

Balas y Chocolate is Lila Downs` 8th studio album (2015) and easily her most personal. She and her longstanding musical and life partner Paul Cohen focus squarely on the current condition of Mexico, and the turmoil that rages within it: the violence of the drug war, the disappearance of students, the migration of children, rampant international greed, and unrestricted capitalism played out on its soil are destroying a large, varied ecosystem and indigenous cultures. In originals and a canny choice of covers, Downs juxtaposes folk and popular styles from mariachi and cumbia to hip-hop, pop, son, ranchera, and even klezmer. "Humito de Copal" is a rumbling cumbia.  romantic bolero "Cuando Me Tocas" (When You Touch Me) is rendered achingly beautiful and accented by wavering breaths. "Mano Negra" (Black Hand) demonstrates her range of style in a terrific mash-up of pre-Colombian instruments and mariachi horns with rhythm and harmonics borrowed from Jewish klezmer. The gorgeous production allows Downs` voice to soar solo to the edges of falsetto and contralto or dive into a blend of audio samples.
1. "Humito de Copal"
2. "Mano Negra"
3. "Balas y Chocolate"
4. "Una Cruz de Madera"
5. "La Farsante (feat. Juan Gabriel)"
6. "La Burra"
7. "Cuando Me Tocas Tú"
8. "La Patria Madrina (feat. Juanes)"
9. "Las Casas de Madera"
10. "La Promesa"
11. "Son de Difuntos"
12. "Dulce Veneno"
13. "Viene la Muerte Echando Rasero"